Captaincy an honour for Ashley Young
Saturday 21st May 2011, 11:26AM BST.
Ashley Young admits it has been a “massive honour” to captain Villa as the days count down towards a decision on his future.
Villa face Liverpool in their final Premier League game of the season tomorrow in what could turn out to be Young’s last appearance in a claret and blue shirt.
All eyes will be on the 25-year-old winger at the final whistle to see whether he gives any indication to the Villa supporters as to whether he will remain at the club.
Young is a confirmed target for Liverpool while Manchester United are also reported to be interested but, whatever the outcome of his decision ,the player will always cherish his opportunity to lead the side.
“Being given the captaincy was a massive honour for me and it’s a proud moment every time I put on the armband,” said Young.
“Obviously Stiliyan Petrov is back in the team and I’m grateful for a captain like him. But whenever we go out on the pitch there’s always 11 leaders and 11 captains.
“Everybody talks to each other, we’ve got great team spirit and great character in the squad.
“One person’s got the armband but there are 11 of us out there looking to take responsibility and to take the club forward and that’s what we’ve got to keep doing.”
Young continued: “I’ve just been concentrating on everything that’s happened on the pitch and trying to get the points, whether that’s being involved in scoring or assists.
“I’m not sure what type of captain I am. I’m just one that wants to go out play football and be a leader.”
Meanwhile, defender Ciaran Clark is hopeful he can play some part in the game against Liverpool after he returned to training after a recent back injury.
“I’ve done strength work so I am back fit again and trained as normal,” added Clark.
Latest Blog — A week is a long time in football
This time last week we were staring down the barrel, third from bottom with a worse record than at the same stage last year, writes Saddlers blogger Mark Jones.
Saddlers Blog
Business Awards
Book a Business Awards table
Join our celebrations of the region's best in business on Thursday March 22 - book your table now
Lifestyle
Interactive Dining Out map
Hundreds of reviews by the Express & Star and Shropshire Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.
entertainment
All the film reviews
Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases
OUR NEW APP
Get the new E&S app
Download the Express & Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.
